Michigan

Renteria's grand slam helps end Tigers' skid

AP PhotoDetroit's Edgar Renteria, right, is greeted at home plate by Brandon Inge after hitting a grand-slam Saturday in the Tigers' 8-4 win.

DETROIT — The Tigers hung Jeremy Bonderman's No. 38 jersey in the dugout, and then hung eight runs on the Cleveland Indians.

Detroit's 8-4 win Saturday broke a four-game losing streak, and after the game they found Bonderman in the clubhouse. A blood clot in the vein transporting blood from his right arm to the heart was broken up Friday and an angioplasty performed Saturday.

Bonderman appreciated his teammates hanging his jersey in the dugout, but smiled and added, "I'm not dead yet. But it's cool."

Tigers manager Jim Leyland had shortstop Edgar Renteria batting leadoff for the second time this year, and prior to the game noted that he did not think his shortstop was fond of hitting at the top of the order.

But Renteria hit an eighth-inning grand slam to provide insurance runs, and also had a pair of singles and a walk.

"Whatever Skip [Leyland] needs," Renteria said, "I am ready to do."

Left fielder Marcus Thames made it 3-3 in the eighth with a leadoff homer that hit near the top of the foul pole in left. His sixth homer of the season came off reliever Masa Kobayashi, and was estimated at 345 feet -- which is the exact distance in the corner.

"The 345 is all I need," Thames said. "I just needed it to stay fair so we can win a ball game. I hope this gives us a spark."

Tracking the Tigers

Saturday's game: Detroit broke a four-game losing streak with a six-run eighth inning featuring a solo leadoff homer by Marcus Thames and a grand slam by Edgar Renteria for an 8-4 win. It was Retneria's second slam of the season and sixth of his career.

Magglio Ordonez followed with a double on which Grady Sizemore could not make a diving catch. Rafael Betancourt came on in relief, and Miguel Cabrera hit a liner that left fielder Ben Francisco froze on. It went over his head for a single and scored Ordonez to give Detroit the lead.

Carlos Guillen singled and Brent Clevlen, recalled Friday from Toledo, bunted Cabrera and Guillen over to second and third. Brandon Inge was intentionally walked.

Ryan Raburn struck out swinging, but Renteria cleared the bases to put away the game. The sellout crowd of 42,193 went wild.

"We finally got some big hits," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "That was a huge hit by Miguel Cabrera and a big one by Renteria."

Todd Jones, who got the save, added, "Our offense is like a Ferrari with a clogged fuel-injector. We sputter, sputter and then take off. These guys are trying so hard."

The offensive explosion made a winner out of reliever Zach Miner (3-3), who gave up one run in the ninth to break a streak of 15 scoreless relief innings.

Jones came on to get the final out with two on and record his 310th career save, tying 2008 Hall of Fame inductee Goose Gossage for 17th place.

"Well, he's a Hall of Famer and that's where the comparisons stop," Jones said with a smile. "I got the anti-Goose Gossage save with one out. He usually went two or three innings to get them."

Third baseman Guillen hit his 100th career homer, and the two-run shot to left in the fourth inning tied the score. Detroit had not scored a run in the first four innings of its last four games, all losses.

The homer off Indians rookie starter Aaron Laffey was Guillen's sixth of the season.

The Indians took a 3-2 lead in the sixth on an uncommon error by starter Kenny Rogers, a five-time Gold Glove winner. Francisco led off the inning with a bunt that Rogers charged to field between the mound and third-base line. He lost his footing, but elected to throw the ball toward first from the seat of his pants. Francisco had the bunt single beat out, and advanced all the way to third on the throwing error.

"He tried to make a play like he was 20 instead of 40," Leyland said of his 43-year-old starter.

Cleveland scored its first two runs in the second inning with another error factoring into the scoring.

First baseman Cabrera went into the hole to field the ball, but it glanced off his glove into right field for an error that allowed Jhonny Peralta to score from second. Peralta started the rally with a one-out single before Rogers hit Casey Blake with a pitch.

Blake scored on a ground-rule double by catcher Kelly Shoppach, which put runners on second and third and one out. But Rogers buckled down, getting Andy Marte to pop out to short. Then right fielder Raburn made a nice running catch on Sizemore to strand two in scoring position.

Keeping an eye on Zumaya and Rodney: Leyland plans to watch both Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney pitch tonight in Toledo after Detroit's day game. Leyland said Zumaya has dominated Class A hitters in two outings with the Lakeland Tigers, and it was decided that his next action would come for the Triple-A Mud Hens.

He stressed that his visit should not indicate that either reliever is close to coming to Detroit, adding that Zumaya will "in no way shape or form" pitch during the current 10-game homestand. Both are coming off right shoulder problems or surgeries.

Cup visit: Kris Draper and Brian Rafalski of the Detroit Red Wings threw out simultaneous first pitches and brought the Stanley Cup onto the field. Draper raised it over his head and brought it off the field through a tunnel behind home plate, allowing fans to touch the trophy they won by taking a six-game finals series from the Pittsburgh Penguins.